Dear SaaStr: Should I Visit My Customers More?

Dear SaaStr: Should I Visit My Customers More?

Yes. Absolutely.

Of course you should.

You should visit your customers more. I can’t stress this enough—getting in front of your customers is one of the most effective things you can do to drive growth, retention, and expansion. It’s not just about building relationships, it’s about understanding their needs, getting unfiltered feedback, and showing them you’re invested in their success.

Here’s why it works:

1. You Always Learn More Than You Expect

When I was scaling Adoe Sign / EchoSign, I didn’t visit customers enough early on. My mentor called me out on it, and he was right. Once I started visiting them, I learned things I never would have over email or Zoom. Customers opened up about what they loved, what they hated, and what they needed next. That feedback directly shaped our roadmap and helped us grow faster.

And two big ones — BT and GE — took a risk on us they wouldn’t have over Zoom.

2**. It Strengthens Relationships**

Especially with your top customers, in-person meetings build trust. When you visit, you’re not just another vendor—they see you as a partner. I’ve said this before: I never lost a customer I visited in person. Never. That’s how powerful it is.

3. Roadmap Presentations Are Gold

If you’re unsure how to structure these visits, do a roadmap presentation. Show them what’s coming in the next 12 months and ask for their input. It’s not a sales pitch, but it often leads to upsells and renewals because they see you’re committed to their success. Plus, it gets more stakeholders in the room, which is a win.

4. It’s a Competitive Advantage:

Your competitors probably aren’t doing this. In today’s remote-first world, most founders and execs avoid travel. But the vendor that shows up in person wins the deal, the upsell, and the long-term loyalty. It’s that simple.

**Start with your top 5-10 customers. Visit them at least twice a year. **

Bring your head of customer success or product with you—they can answer questions and show your team’s commitment. And if you’re worried about the cost, think of it this way: the ROI on retaining and expanding your biggest accounts far outweighs the price of a plane ticket and a steak dinner.

Here are some guidelines:

Show up in person to any $50k+. If the deal is competitive, and you show up, your odds of winning go way, way up.competitivedealShow up in person to any $100k+ deal if you can, even if you think you’ve “won” it or are the clear default choice. These deals are worth the time and effort to travel, almost always, unless you are very remote.Show up in person to. There is no excuse if you are in the Bay Area, and your prospect is as well, to not go meet in person.everylocal $50k+ deal**Show up in person to every Top 100 logo deal.**Figure out the Top 100 logos you want to get. And force the team to go in person. Even if it’s a $5k deal today, of course, a top logo deal can be six figures over time.Show up in person if the competition does, period, if you want to win it. Thing is, it’s hard to know until it’s too late.Customers outside of tech often expect an in-person visit for bigger deals, period. If you are struggling to close non-tech customers over Zoom, there’s a reason why. It’s not SOP there. Go visit. Go make a customer call in person.